The record

LegislationLegislation· Jun 2026
HR 6338 Passed House — in Senate

Sponsored by Gregory W. Meeks (D)

Stop Illegal Fishing Act

Authorizes the President to impose sanctions on foreign vessels and persons engaged in illegal fishing.

Tradeoff

Blocks foreign illegal fishing operations from U.S. assets and bans their crews from entering the country. Allows exceptions for humanitarian aid, international obligations, and life-saving assistance to vessels.

What's in it

See official bill text

Reduces deficit by less than $500,000 over 2026-2035; federal enforcement cost less than $500,000 over 2026-2030.

The $500,000 is just the federal cost to enforce the sanctions and issue annual reports—the policy's real impact falls on foreign fishing operators who face asset freezes and transaction prohibitions, and on U.S. financial institutions that must comply with monitoring and blocking requirements.

H.R. 6338, Stop Illegal Fishing Act · Dec 2025

Passed the House by on June 8, 2026 — sitting in the Senate.

  1. House

    Introduced

    (Dec 1, 2025)

  2. House

    Committee on Foreign Affairs(Dec 1, 2025)

    The bill went to more than one committee at the same time.

  3. House

    The committee voted to send it to the floor

    Reported 47 - 2(Dec 3, 2025)

  4. House

    Passage of the bill

    Passed by (Jun 8, 2026)

    No individual votes were recorded.

  5. Senate

    Received from the House

    on Foreign Relations(Jun 9, 2026)